It is well known in the lighting industry that a number of commercial environments require the use of specially adapted lighting fixtures to obtain satisfactory performance and minimize safety risks. For example, it is known that certain lighting fixtures must be specially constructed in order to withstand repeated or constant exposure to water or other liquids, extreme hot or cold temperatures, flammable or explosive gases, etc. Fixtures specially adapted for such usage are commercially available under the Hazlux.RTM. trademark offered by assignee of the present invention, as shown in reorder catalog No. H-7036 entitled "Industrial Lighting Fixtures for Hazardous Locations and Adverse Environments" effective Jan. 28, 1991.
Typically, light fixtures for use in hazardous locations and adverse environments are of the fluorescent or high intensity discharge variety, and therefore require ballasts for proper operation. Since the performance of a typical ballast tends to deteriorate with age, replacement of ballasts is a common requirement. Usually, the entire ballast housing is removed and replaced with an identical component.
To date, there is virtually no standardization of ballast housing configurations in the industry. While ballast housings provided by different manufacturers may look generally the same and operate in generally the same manner, one manufacturer's product will not likely serve as an interchangeable replacement for another manufacturer's housing. If the user wishes to replace a malfunctioning housing with a product made by another manufacturer, it is also necessary to replace the mounting plate and rewire the light fixture. This results in a considerable expense. The incompatibility between different manufacturers' ballast housings has presented a considerable problem which has heretofore not been adequately addressed.